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DEERFIELD, Ill. -- Ben Wallace figures the emotions will tug
at him like an aggressive defender. Wallace will face his former Detroit teammates Saturday night
for the first time since signing with Chicago in the offseason. And
maybe he can put to rest the notion that there's lingering ill
will. "It's going to be emotional to go back out there and play
against these guys that I went to war with for so many years,"
Wallace said of the game at the United Center. "But I think it's
going to be good. When I left, there was a lot of stuff said about
me abandoning the team, me and some players didn't get along. "It'll just be good to show everybody that we're going to play
hard against each other, but at the end of the day, we've still got
much love for each other." A four-time defensive player of the year, Wallace blossomed
during his six seasons in Detroit -- a run that included a
championship in 2004 and four selections to the All-Star game. He
was the Pistons' star, but he reportedly did not get along with
coach Flip Saunders and refused to re-enter a game in the fourth
quarter last season. There were also reports that Wallace wanted to be more involved
in the offense, which he has called a misunderstanding, saying he
just wanted to help set up teammates and not take more shots. Meanwhile, the Bulls were looking for help down low and some
veteran leadership after losing to eventual champion Miami in six
games in the first round of the playoffs last season. Although
Wallace didn't provide the scoring punch they lacked, he figured to
strengthen a defense that was already good. The marquee free agent, the Bulls signed him for four years and
$60 million, but the transition hasn't been smooth. Chicago struggled defensively early on, the perimeter players at
times relying too heavily on Wallace to bail them out. The result
was a 3-9 start for a team expected to contend in the Eastern
Conference. The frustration boiled over when Wallace violated a team rule by
wearing a headband at New York on Nov. 25. It was a low point and,
coincidentally, a turning point for Chicago. Wallace was benched during that game, which the Bulls won
106-95. It started a turnaround for Chicago, at 19-13 entering
Friday's game at New Jersey. Luol Deng is enjoying a breakout season, averaging 18.1 points
and 6.5 rebounds. Ben Gordon has seen his scoring average jump from
16.9 to 20.8, and the third-year pro is making a case for his
second NBA sixth man of the year award. But Wallace? He's 13th in the league at 9.9 rebounds and 10th in blocks at
1.97 per game -- not bad. But it's his worst season, statistically,
since 1999-2000, when he averaged 8.2 and 1.6 for Orlando. His
current scoring average is 6.8. And opposing centers have put up some lofty numbers -- most
recently by Amare Stoudemire, who scored 24 points and grabbed 18
rebounds in Phoenix's 97-96 victory on Tuesday. Wallace shook it off, saying, "That's the makeup of their team.
... They've got so many guys you've got to be aware of, it's easy
for (them) to get to the spots they want to get to." But according to the Elias Sports Bureau, it was only the third
time an opposing center had that many points and rebounds in a game
Wallace started. Patrick Ewing had 28 and 18 on April 7, 2000, when
Wallace was with Orlando. And David Robinson had 29 points and 22
rebounds on Jan. 6, 2001, in a game against the Pistons. Orlando's Dwight Howard (27 points, 11 rebounds on Nov. 1),
Dallas' Erick Dampier (14 points, 13 rebounds on Nov. 14),
Houston's Yao Ming (20 points, 12 rebounds on Nov. 16) and New
York's Eddy Curry (24 points, eight rebounds on Nov. 28) have all
had big games against Chicago this season. Wallace has insisted since the headband incident that he's more
comfortable with the Bulls, and it doesn't hurt that they're living
up to their billing and challenging the Pistons. "We've been more consistent for longer stretches," coach Scott
Skiles said. "We're still not where we need to be, but we've
definitely been better." Wallace sees a young core maturing, communicating more and is
not surprised by the results. "We had to get a chance to know each other and really feel each
other out as teammates and people," Wallace said. "People look at
it on paper and say, 'They should be doing this; they should be
doing that.' But until you get to know each other, you go through
different spells. You go up and down." He'll face a familiar group on Saturday night, and the Bulls
don't visit Detroit until Feb. 25. "I guess it will be good to let our fans boo them before I have
an opportunity to let their fans boo me," Wallace said.
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